What if sony would not have released the ps3?

[nintendo_fanboy]

This thread seems to into the wrong direction. my question is: could sony (if they would not have released the ps3) beat their competitors by staying with the ps2?

I say yes, because third parties would stick with ps2 and wii/x360 would probably have sold as many units as they have now but then the sales would slow down because many consumers and third parties would not shift away from ps2.